


From Dusk till Dawn

by dragons_SRSunn



Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: AU, Don't expect canon events to happen in here, I Don't Know Where This Is Going, Who Knows?, but they might
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-30
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:28:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25003909
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dragons_SRSunn/pseuds/dragons_SRSunn
Summary: Leafpool and Crowfeather never met Midnight, and so never returned to the Clans. Some time later, a young apprentice named Hollypaw shows up at the border, asking to be taken in to the Clans of her parents.
Comments: 20
Kudos: 61





	1. Allegiances

**Author's Note:**

> This is really written by a friend who was too embarrassed to get her own account so I'm posting it for her. It's not my work, but it is amazing!!!

ALLEGIANCES

ThunderClan:  
Leader: Firestar  
Deputy: Brambleclaw  
Apprentice, Berrypaw  
Medicine Cat: Brightheart  
Warriors: Squirrelflight  
Dustpelt  
Apprentice, Hazelpaw  
Sandstorm  
Apprentice, Honeypaw  
Cloudtail  
Apprentice, Cinderpaw  
Brackenfur  
Sorreltail  
Thornclaw  
Apprentice, Poppypaw  
Ashfur  
Spiderleg  
Apprentice, Mousepaw  
Brook Where Small Fish Swim (Brook)  
Stormfur  
Whitewing  
Birchfall  
Graystripe  
Millie  
Queens: Ferncloud, mother of Foxkit and Icekit  
Daisy  
Elders: Longtail  
Mousefur

ShadowClan:   
Leader: Blackstar  
Deputy: Russetfur  
Medicine Cat: Littlecloud  
Warriors: Oakfur  
Rowanclaw  
Apprentice, Ivypaw  
Smokefoot  
Apprentice, Owlpaw  
Snowbird  
Queens: Tawnypelt, mother of Flamekit, Dawnkit, and Tigerkit  
Elders: Cedarheart  
Tallpoppy

WindClan:  
Leader: Onestar  
Deputy: Ashfoot  
Medicine Cats: Barkface  
Apprentice, Kestrelpaw  
Warriors: Tornear  
Apprentice: Harepaw  
Owlwhisker  
Whitetail  
Nightcloud  
Apprentice: Heatherpaw  
Weaselfur  
Queens: Gorsetail, mother of Thistlekit, Sedgekit, and Swallowkit  
Elders:Morningflower  
Webfoot

RiverClan:  
Leader: Leopardstar  
Deputy: Mistyfoot  
Apprentice, Dapplepaw  
Medicine Cats: Mothwing  
Apprentice, Willowpaw  
Warriors: Blackclaw  
Voletooth  
Apprentice, Minnowpaw  
Reedwhisker  
Apprentice, Pouncepaw  
Mosspelt  
Apprentice, Pebblepaw  
Beechfur  
Rippletail  
Queens: Dawnflower  
Graymist, mother of Sneezekit and Mallowkit  
Icewing  
Elders: Swallowtail  
Stonestream

Cats Outside the Clans:  
Smoky  
Floss  
Leafpool  
Crowfeather  
Hollypaw  
Lionpaw  
Jaypaw


	2. Chapter 1

Hollypaw stood at the border, shifting her weight nervously.  
At least, she assumed it was the border. For all she knew, it was simply the scent of a few cats who had happened to be there recently.  
 _Stop doubting yourself_ , she told herself nervously. _It’s exactly like Crowfeather told me it would be-it’s a wall of scent. Just wait here, and make sure not to go past it, and sooner or later a patrol will show up._  
But what if it was the wrong Clan, and they didn’t tell her how to get to the right Clans, or they attacked her, or even worse, it was the right Clan but they attacked her anyway without even giving her a chance?  
 _Calm down_ , she told herself. She took a deep breath. They had to give her a chance, at least to talk to them. She had kin in two Clans, didn’t she?  
But what if having kin in two Clans was precisely why they didn’t give her a chance? Hollypaw’s father had told her and her brothers, Lionpaw and Jaypaw, stories a friend of him had told him, about cats being imprisoned and starved and murdered because they were half-Clan and so couldn’t be trusted. Their mother, Leafpool, had glared at Crowfeather, and told Hollypaw and her brothers that that had been under the rule of the vicious Tigerstar, who was long dead and would never harm the Clans again. Then she and Crowfeather had had a whispered argument about what stories were age-appropriate for the three of them. Not an _argument_ , Hollypaw reminded herself, a _discussion_.  
They would let her at least talk to them, wouldn’t they? According to her parents, ThunderClan wasn’t the kind of Clan to chase her off without at least hearing her out.  
Was this even ThunderClan’s border? For all she knew, it was ShadowClan’s. Crowfeather had told her what the different Clans smelled like-ThunderClan like oaks, ShadowClan like pines, RiverClan like fish, and WindClan like the moor.  
She’d never even smelled the moor, and the only fish she’d ever smelled were the ones her father ate once a month, at the full moon.  
Besides, this border didn’t particularly smell like any of the other scents. So maybe this was WindClan’s border. Or maybe, bringing Hollypaw back to her original worry, this was the border of some rogues, not a Clan, or maybe it wasn’t a border at all.  
No, this had to be a border. She’d followed Leafpool and Crowfeather’s directions exactly. “Why do I have to go to ThunderClan first?” she’d wanted to know. “Why not WindClan?”  
“Kits whose parents are from different Clans usually go to their mother’s Clan.” Leafpool had told her. “Also, ThunderClan…ThunderClan is…”  
“ThunderClan’s more open than the other Clans to accepting outsiders.” Crowfeather had finished.  
 _I’m not an outsider_ , Hollypaw thought now. _I’m just as Clanborn as they are. It’s just my parents aren’t in the Clans anymore._  
Crowfeather had brought her as close to Clan territory as he’d dared. “Follow the sun for two sunrises and you’ll be there,” he’d told her. “Either WindClan or ThunderClan is bound to accept you. If you haven’t come back in a few moons, we’ll assume one of them took you in and send Lionpaw and Jaypaw after you. You’ll be fine.”  
Hollypaw was breathing fast, her paws shaking. “Come with me,” she managed to plead.  
Crowfeather shook his head. “You know I can’t,” he told her. “You know the warrior code.”  
Hollypaw knew the warrior code. But she also knew all the stories of Clan life her parents had told her. “They didn’t exile Graystripe,” she pointed out.  
Crowfeather shook his head. “It’s not so simple. WindClan isn’t ThunderClan. You’ll understand when you get there.” He sighed. “Tell Ashfoot...tell her I love her, and I’m sorry, but I had to leave, and I hope she understands.”  
“I will,” Hollypaw promised.  
Crowfeather touched his nose to the tip of her ear in a rare gesture of affection. “Take care,” he said. He hesitated, then turned and started walking back the way they had come. Hollypaw stood watching him for a heartbeat, took three deep breaths, and turned to follow the sun. Neither of them looked back.  
Now, waiting at what she dearly hoped was a Clan border-if it was actually ThunderClan’s or WindClan’s she’d thank StarClan forever- Hollypaw wasn’t having second thoughts. She was having what were probably two hundredth thoughts. Why, oh, why, had she agreed to this? Why hadn’t she insisted that at least one of her brothers come with her? Lionpaw would be able to protect them if they were attacked, and Jaypaw would know what herbs to use if they were injured. Hollypaw knew some herbs too, but not nearly as much as he did, and if she was injured by the Clan cats she wouldn’t be able to look after herself.  
She took a step back from the probable border. She didn’t have to do this now. She could go back home, wait until she was ready, until her brothers were able to come with her, or better yet, their parents, and they could handle everything. She could-  
And then the patrol arrived.


	3. Chapter 2

When Cloudtail told Cinderpaw they were going on a hunting patrol with Brambleclaw, Berrypaw, and Whitewing, she didn't expect anything out of the ordinary to happen, unless Berrypaw spent a whole patrol not boasting about what a great hunter he was. That would be out of the ordinary. No such luck; he started almost as soon as they left the camp. Then he caught a mouse. On the plus side, that meant he couldn't keep bragging because he was carrying the mouse in his mouth. On the minus side, that meant he had proof, and Cinderpaw just knew he was going to spend the rest of the day going on and on about it. She was determined to catch something to show she was just as good of a hunter as he was, even if he was older. 

Brambleclaw caught a squirrel, and Cinderpaw had just picked up the scent of vole when Brambleclaw lifted his tail and motioned for silence. Cinderpaw opened her mouth to protest-the vole was getting away!-but Cloudtail stuck his tail in it and gently pushed her backwards. He and Whitewing stood protectively in front of her and Berrypaw, with Brambleclaw slightly in front of them. 

Cinderpaw spat out Cloudtail's tail-he twitched- and looked around. They were near the border of the outside territories now. Cinderpaw hadn't been here very often, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Wind rustled the leaves. Birds twittered in the trees. A squirrel-her paws ached to chase it- ran along a tree branch far above their heads.

Then she stiffened. She smelled it-the same thing the others had smelled. The scent of an unfamiliar cat wafted from behind a bush by the border. Cinderpaw opened her jaws and tasted the air. She could only smell one cat. _Let's chase it off our territory!_ Beside her, Berrypaw was flexing his claws. Brambleclaw touched his shoulder with his tail tip, gave his squirrel to Cloudtail, and stepped through the bush. The rest of the patrol followed.

Exactly on the border between ThunderClan and no-Clans'-land stood a young she-cat. She looked to be a little younger than Cinderpaw. Her fur was as black as the yew tree Cinderpaw and Honeypaw had climbed the other day, and her green eyes were wide and fearful. Cinderpaw had the odd feeling that they were familiar, but they couldn't be. She had never seen this cat before in her life.

Cinderpaw unsheathed her claws. "Who are you," Brambleclaw demanded, "and what are you doing on our territory?

 _What?_ Cinderpaw blinked. This was a loner! Not even a Clan cat! They should just chase her off right now! Okay, so there was only one of her, and she looked young, and scared. They wouldn't need to hurt her, Cinderpaw reasoned, just chase her away and scare her from coming back. They didn't need to waste time talking!

The black she-cat met Brambleclaw's gaze, although Cinderpaw could see she was trembling. She answered, "I-I'm Hollypaw."

Brambleclaw, Cloudtail, and Whitewing exchanged wary glances. 

"That's a Clan name." Brambleclaw meowed slowly.

"You're a Clan?" Hollypaw's eyes lit up, and her shoulders slumped slightly in relief-only slightly, Cinderpaw noticed. "What Clan is this?"

Brambleclaw, Cloudtail, and Whitewing looked at each other again. Behind them, Cinderpaw and Berrypaw exchanged their own puzzled glances. A loner who knew of the Clans, and even seemed excited to find them? That was odd, wasn't it? And she had a Clan name...

"We are ThunderClan cats." Brambleclaw told the strange cat. "I am Brambleclaw, the deputy."

"ThunderClan." Hollypaw repeated, and then whispered something Cinderpaw couldn't hear under her breath. Apparently Cloudtail heard her, though.

"A loner thanking StarClan?" he asked suspiciously after putting the squirrel down. "And with a Clan name? Who _are_ you?"

"I'm not a loner." Hollypaw told him, and then began speaking in a jumbled rush. "I mean, I guess technically I am, or maybe a rogue, or both, but I'm also a Clan cat, because my parents were in the Clans."

"Your parents." Brambleclaw repeated, his eyes narrowing as if he already had an inkling as to what her answer might be. "Who are..."

Hollypaw swallowed. Her eyes darted around at all of them, Brambleclaw with his strong tabby shoulders; Cloudtail, the white fur around his muzzle stained red with the squirrel's blood; Whitewing looking at her inquisitively; Berrypaw with his mouth full of dead mouse and making little growling noises in the back of his throat until Brambleclaw brushed his muzzle with his tail-tip; and Cinderpaw, who had no idea what was going on.

Hollypaw straightened and held her tail erect. She took a deep breath. "Leafpool and Crowfeather."

_Leafpool and Crowfeather!_

"Leafpool and Crowfeather!" Even though Cinderpaw thought Brambleclaw had had an idea to whom Hollypaw's Clanborn parents were, he still sounded stunned.

"Is Leafpool all right?" Whitewing asked. "Where is she?"

"Leafpool had _kits?_ " Cloudtail gasped. "She's a medicine cat! Although I suppose that doesn't matter to her anymore...Is she coming back?"

"Mmf mmf mmf!" Berrypaw added through the mouse in his mouth. 

The only one who didn't say anything was Cinderpaw. She had heard of Leafpool, of course. Leafpool had been a medicine cat, her mother's friend, Squirrelflight's sister, Firestar and Sandstorm's daughter, and the apprentice of the cat Cinderpaw was named after. But she had never met her. Before Cinderpaw was born, Leafpool had disappeared at the same time as Crowfeather, the WindClan cat who had gone with Brambleclaw, Squirrelflight, and Stormfur to the sun-drown-place. No cat had seen, heard, or scented anything of them since.

Until now, apparently.

"You're Leafpool's kit?" Whitewing was asking Hollypaw. "But medicine cats can't have kits!"

Cloudtail snorted. "Medicine cats can't disappear on their Clans either, but that didn't bother her when she abandoned us, did it?" He glared at Hollypaw as if Leafpool leaving ThunderClan was all her fault. "Is she coming back?" he asked her again.

Hollypaw shook her head. "No, she-"

Cloudtail cut her off. "Then did she send you to be our medicine cat instead?" He stared at Hollypaw, almost desperately, it seemed.

"What? No." Hollypaw seemed confused. "She-"

Cloudtail interrupted her again, lashing his tail. "Then _why are you here_?" he demanded.

Hollypaw's eyes widened, and she took a small step back.

Cloudtail didn't seem to notice. "Why did-" he started to continue.

Whitewing brushed against him and wove around him, trying to calm him down. "It's not her fault," she told him quietly. They started whispering to each other. Cinderpaw strained her ears, but she couldn't hear what they were saying.

"Mmf mmf mmf mmf," Berrypaw told her, eyes wide.

"Yeah," Cinderpaw agreed. She'd never seen Cloudtail like that before. The closest he'd come to looking like that was whenever he and Brightheart had one of their whispered conversations. He always looked at her with that strange, desperate, look in his eyes.

"Did any other cat come with you?" Brambleclaw was asking Hollypaw.

Hollypaw shook her head. "No, they just sent me for now."

Cinderpaw wondered if Brambleclaw had noticed the "for now". Probably. He wasn't deputy for nothing, after all.

"Why did they send you?" Brambleclaw asked-not accusing, just questioning.

Hollypaw shifted her paws. "To-to join-the Clans."

Brambleclaw's face was inscrutable. "Which Clan? ThunderClan or WindClan?"

Hollypaw's tail twitched. "Well, they said that kits who-whose parents are in different Clans usually go to their mother's Clan. And also that ThunderClan is more open to taking in other cats."

"True enough." Brambleclaw meowed.

"Mmf." Berrypaw agreed. _He_ had been a cat taken in by ThunderClan, Cinderpaw remembered.

Brambleclaw, Cloudtail, and Whitewing conferred together for a few heartbeats. Cinderpaw caught the words "Firestar," "Brightheart," and "Squirrelflight".

Then Brambleclaw flicked his tail at Hollypaw. "Come with us," he ordered. "I know some cats who will be very excited to meet you."


	4. Chapter 3

Hollypaw felt terrified and excited all at once. This was really happening! These cats were really taking her to ThunderClan! The Clan of her mother's stories and reminisces. Leafpool had told Hollypaw and her brothers all about ThunderClan and its cats, especially her sister, Squirrelflight. Could she be one of the cats whom Brambleclaw had said would be excited to meet her? Excited was good, right? Not angry? Although that white tom had looked pretty angry. What if the rest of ThunderClan reacted like he had? And-

"I'm Cinderpaw!" the gray she-cat mewed as she bounded up beside Hollypaw, interrupting her train of thought.

"Mmf mmf mmf," the cream-colored tom with a mouse in his mouth added as he fell in on Hollypaw's other side.

"And that's Berrypaw," Cinderpaw translated. They all started following the warriors, each of whom kept looking back at Hollypaw as if they expected her to suddenly vanish.

"That's my mentor, Cloudtail," Cinderpaw told her, flicking her tail in the direction of the white tom. "Don't worry, he's not usually like that. He just- well, it's complicated. You'll see. And that's Whitewing. Cloudtail's her father. And that's Brambleclaw, the deputy, like he said."

"Mmf mmf," Berrypaw added proudly.

"He's Berrypaw's mentor," Cinderpaw told Hollypaw. "I can't believe I'm on the patrol that found you!" she went on. "Honeypaw and Poppypaw are going to be so jealous!"

"Who are Honeypaw and Poppypaw?" Hollypaw asked.

"My sisters," Cinderpaw replied. "Do you have any sisters?"

"No," Hollypaw answered. But I have two brothers, Lionpaw and Jaypaw."

"Why didn't they come with you?" Cinderpaw asked.

Hollypaw wished they had come with her. She would feel ten times more secure if they were with her. She missed them.

She shook her head; Cinderpaw was waiting for an answer. "They wanted me to make a good impression first," she told her.

"Oh," Cinderpaw said. "And your brothers wouldn't make a good impression?"

Hollypaw shrugged. "Leafpool said Lionpaw was too aggressive and Jaypaw was too defensive. And Crowfeather said that meant they would pick a fight with anyone who looked at them the wrong way, and at least I had a chance of getting to the camp without getting my ears clawed off or clawing off somebody else's."

Cinderpaw laughed.

_Laughed._

Hollypaw had expected the Clan cats to react with disapproval at best and outrage at worst at her existence, and at her parents, because they weren't _supposed_ to be her parents. But laughter?

Cinderpaw was too young to have known Hollypaw's parents, wasn't she? Maybe that was it.

"Did you know Leafpool?" Hollypaw asked her.

Cinderpaw shook her head. "No, I was born after she left. My mother was her friend, though."

"Who's your mother?" Hollypaw asked.

"Sorreltail."

Leafpool had spoken of Sorreltail in the same wistful tone she spoke in when talking about anything to do with the Clans-her friend, a warrior, who as a kit had been poisoned with deathberries by Darkstripe, an ally of Tigerstar's, and had been expecting kits when Leafpool and Crowfeather had left. Cinderpaw was one of them, Hollypaw supposed.

"Mmf mmf mmf!" Berrypaw told her excitedly.

"What?" Hollypaw asked.

Berrypaw spoke again, attempting to speak clearly despite the mouse he was carrying in his mouth. This time his efforts were somewhat more successful. "Mmf memember Meafmool!"

"You...remember?" Cinderpaw tried. "Oh! You remember Leafpool?"

Berrypaw nodded vigorously.

"Yeah, Berrypaw and Hazelpaw and Mousepaw are a few moons older than me and my littermates," Cinderpaw informed Hollypaw. "They remember Leafpool and the badger attack and everything."

"The badger attack?" Hollypaw asked.

Cinderpaw nodded. "Yes, the one Cinderpelt died in."

Hollypaw froze. "The one Cinderpelt _died_ in?" she echoed.

"That's what I said," Cinderpaw mewed.

"Cinderpelt's _dead_?" Hollypaw whispered.

"Yeees," Cinderpaw said slowly.

Berrypaw looked at Hollypaw quizzically. "Mmf mmf," he put in, but Hollypaw wasn't paying any attention to him.

Leafpool talked about Cinderpelt all the time. She had been her mentor, had taught her everything she knew about herbs and healing. She had originally been a warrior apprentice, training under Firestar, Leafpool's father, but a monster had hit her, crippling her leg. She had then been mentored by Yellowfang, and become ThunderClan's medicine cat. She had interpreted several signs and prophecies from StarClan, including the fire-and-tiger one. She had found out about Leafpool and Crowfeather, but hadn't told the rest of the Clan. She and Leafpool had been very close, at least before Leafpool left.

"Tell Cinderpelt I'm sorry," Leafpool had requested of Hollypaww. "Ask her if she could please understand-or at least try to understand-it's not that I didn't want to be a medicine cat. I did; I still do. But I just....She was going to be a warrior. She knows what it's like to wish things could be different. Tell her....Just tell her all that, I guess. Tell her I love her."

And now Cinderpelt was dead. Leafpool was going to be devastated.

"So who's the medicine cat now?" she asked Cinderpaw.

Cinderpaw and Berrypaw looked at each other. "After Cinderpelt died," Cinderpaw told her, "-I'm named after her, you know, she was my father's sister and she died protecting my mother from a badger- anyway, after she died, Firestar sent out patrols looking for Leafpool. But they never found her. So Brightheart became our medicine cat instead."

Hollypaw knew about Brightheart. As an apprentice, she had lost an eye and an ear to the vicious pack of dogs lured into the forest by Tigerstar. She had spent a long time recovering in the medicine den, and had been given the name Lostface by Bluestar, but Firestar had changed it to Brightheart. She had later become mates with....

Oh.

Hollypaw's stomach fell down to her toes. "She's Cloudtail's mate," she whispered.

"Well, she used to be," Cinderpaw replied.

"And now she's the medicine cat..." Hollypaw said slowly, putting the pieces together.

"Right," Cinderpaw continued. "She knew a lot about herbs and stuff, so cats started coming to her to treat them. It wasn't like there was an official ceremony making her the medicine cat-it just sort of happened. Barkface from WindClan came over to teach her whatever she didn't know, and-" Cinderpaw shrugged-"now she's our medicine cat."

"But she and Cloudtail..." Hollypaw started.

"They used to be mates," Cinderpaw told her. "But now they aren't anymore, because she's a medicine cat, and medicine cats can't have mates or kits. Er, except, um, for your, uh, for Leafpool. Cloudtail's probably hoping Leafpool sent you to be the medicine cat instead. _Were_ you sent to be the medicine cat instead?"

"No!" Hollypaw's heartbeat sped up. _Was_ she supposed to be the next medicine cat? "I mean, I don't...." She needed to think. This was a lot to absorb.

"Mmf mmf mmf mmf mmf mmf mmf?" Berrypaw asked Cinderpaw. "Mmf mmf mfmf mmf mmfm mmf mmf!" 

"For StarClan's sake, Berrypaw," Cinderpaw snapped exasperatedly, "put the mouse down and talk like a normal cat!"

Berrypaw put the mouse down. "What I said," he said, sounding affronted, "was, 'How do you know all of that? You were only a tiny kit then!' I mean," he went on, "you were barely born then, but I was apprenticed right before Barkface left!" 

"I actually listen to what the elders tell us," Cinderpaw informed him archly, and then added, "Plus also sometimes I eavesdrop on the warriors. It's the only way to find out anything interesting."

Berrypaw nodded in agreement. "They never tell us anything!"

There was a yowl from in front of them. "Come on!" Brambleclaw called.

Hollypaw realized that while they had been talking they had stopped walking. _Oops,_ she thought, as the three young cats hurried to catch up. _Not_ _a good first impression to make..._

They reached a sandy hollow, empty of any roots or plants.

"Wait here," Brambleclaw told Hollypaw. "You two-" he nodded at Cinderpaw and Berrypaw-"stay with her."

With a flick of his tail, he beckoned the other warriors to follow him. Whitewing took Berrypaw's mouse, and Cloudtail gave Hollypaw one last penetrating look. Then they followed Brambleclaw into the bushes, leaving Cinderpaw, Berrypaw, and Hollypaw alone in the empty hollow.

"This is the training hollow," Cinderpaw told Hollypaw. "It's where our mentors teach us battle moves, and we practice them. Do you know any battle moves?"

"Of course," Hollypaw replied; did she think she was a kittypet? "My father taught me."

"So they'd be WindClan moves." Cinderpaw mused.

Hollypaw shifted her paws uncomfortably.

"Hey," Berrypaw suddenly meowed to her, "are we supposed to be guarding you? I've never guarded anyone before. Cool."

Cinderpaw rolled her eyes.

Hollypaw began to pace back and forth. Now that she was so close to meeting the rest of ThunderClan, she was even more nervous than before, if that was possible. Sure, Berrypaw and Cinderpaw seemed all right with her existence, but if Cloudtail's reaction was any indication, the rest of the Clan wouldn't be, and given what she had just learned about Cinderpelt and Brightheart, she couldn't entirely blame them. Whitewing hadn't seemed to blame her, though. Not that she'd said much. But what about the rest of the Clan? Didn't Brightheart have littermates? What if they all hated Leafpool now? What if they wanted Hollypaw to be the medicine cat instead of Brightheart? Did she _want_ to be the medicine cat? She knew some herbs from Leafpool, but she liked hunting too. What if ThunderClan didn't accept her and she had to leave? What would she tell her parents and her brothers? They'd be so disappointed in her. Would she go to WindClan? What if they didn't accept her either, despite Crowfeather's mother being the deputy? What-

Hollypaw was startled out of her increasingly panicked thoughts by a yowl from the slope above the hollow. She looked up in time to see a glimpse of ginger fur vanishing into the bushes, heading straight toward them.

"Who is that?" Hollypaw whispered.

Cinderpaw, who apparently had gotten a clearer view than Hollypaw had, not to mention had the advantage of knowing all the cats in this territory since birth, replied, "Squirrelflight." 


	5. Chapter 4

Squirrelflight shot out of the bushes and skidded to a halt barely a mouse-length in front of Hollypaw.

"Is it true?" the ginger she-cat demanded. "Brambleclaw said you're Leafpool's kit. Is it true? Why are you here? Did Leafpool send you? Is any other cat with you? Is _Leafpool_ with you?"

She looked wildly around, as if expecting Leafpool to pop out from behind a nearby bush or something.

"I-" Hollypaw wasn't sure what to say.

This was _Squirrelflight_ , her mother's beloved and only sister. Hardly a day went by that Leafpool didn't mention her name, from casual mentions like "I think Squirrelflight would like this," or "I wonder what Squirrelflight would say," to the stories she, or occasionally Crowfeather if the story was about traveling to and from the sun-drown-place, would tell, to the times Leafpool and Crowfeather sat and talked with each other for hours, each looking heartbroken for the life they'd left behind, to the times Leafpool cried out her sister's name in her sleep. Squirrelflight was almost a legend to Hollypaw, Lionpaw, and Jaypaw. And now she was standing right here, her green gaze burning into Hollypaw's.

"Well?" Squirrelflight demanded.

What had her last question been? "No- nobody's with me," Hollypaw managed. "They just sent me."

Squirrelflight's tail drooped. Then she took a deep breath and began pacing around and around Hollypaw, sniffing. She was exactly as Leafpool had described her-ginger fur the color of flame, bright green eyes, very energetic. 

_When Squirrelflight has an opinion or makes a decision about something,_ Leafpool had said, _nothing in the whole forest can convince her to change it._

Hollypaw wondered what decision Squirrelflight would make about her.

"You don't look much like Leafpool," Squirrelflight mused, finally facing her niece. "You look more like Crowfeather, although your fur is darker. But your eyes are the same shade of green as Sandstorm's."

"So that's why she looked familiar!" Hollypaw heard Cinderpaw exclaim behind her. She'd almost forgotten the other two apprentices were there.

Squirrelflight turned toward them. "And what are you two doing here?"

"Brambleclaw said we should stay with Hollypaw," Cinderpaw replied.

"Well, I'm here now," Squirrelflight informed her. "You can go. _Both_ of you," she added, nodding at Berrypaw. He looked crestfallen.

"But I want to see what's going on!" the cream-colored tom protested.

"We," Cinderpaw corrected.

"What?" Berrypaw asked.

" _We_ want to see what's going on."

"Oh, yeah."

"Go to camp now," Squirrelflight interrupted them. "You can see what's going on there. Both of you." She waved her tail at them. "Go. Now."

Cinderpaw and Berrypaw exchanged glances. Then Cinderpaw meowed, "Okay. Bye!"-that last to Hollypaw-and both of them ran off in the same direction Squirrelflight had come from.

"And don't go telling the entire Clan about Hollypaw!" Squirrelflight yowled after them. "That's an order!"

"I love being a warrior," Squirrelflight confided to Hollypaw. "I get to give orders to the apprentices. Whether they'll actually _listen_ is another matter, but it's the principle of the thing."

"I guess," Hollypaw muttered. She wondered why Squirrelflight hadn't wanted Cinderpaw and Berrypaw to tell ThunderClan about her. Then again, it had been hard enough facing one patrol. She really didn't want to face the whole Clan at once, especially if two of them were Cloudtail and Brightheart. Maybe Brambleclaw was breaking the news of her existence slowly, so he'd only told Squirrelflight. Crowfeather had said that her and her brother's existence would be a big shock, especially to ThunderClan and WindClan, the two Clans concerned in her parents...situation. 

_After all,_ Crowfeather's voice murmured in her mind, _they probably never expected to hear from us again_.

"Now," Squirrelflight continued, looking at Hollypaw in the same way she had before, her green eyes burning, "how is Leafpool?"

"She's fine," Hollypaw replied.

"Where is she?" Squirrelflight demanded.

"She's back...where we live," Hollypaw said.

Squirrelflight's eyes bored into her. "And where is that?"

Hollypaw looked away. "I'm not supposed to say."

"Why not?"

"They-both of them-they don't want you finding them."

"Meaning ThunderClan and WindClan, or specifically me?"

"All of you, I guess."

"And I suppose nothing I say will convince you to tell me where she is?"

"Um. No." After a moment, Hollypaw added, "Sorry." Squirrelflight was Leafpool's sister, after all, and perhaps one day StarClan would will it so that the two of them could meet again, or at least that was what Leafpool had said. But not right now, when Hollypaw hadn't even met most of ThunderClan yet and had no idea if they would accept her or not. 

Squirrelflight sighed. "You remind me of Leafpool."

Hollypaw's ears twitched. She was confused. "You said I didn't look like her."

"Not in looks," Squirrelflight amended. "But Leafpool is very good at keeping secrets. You know about the journey to the sun-drown-place?"

Hollypaw nodded. "Crowfeather told us stories about it."

" _Us?"_

"Me and my brothers. Lionpaw and Jaypaw."

Squirrelflight nodded, filing this information away for later. "We hadn't told any cat that we were leaving. The only cat who knew where we were going, and why, was Leafpool. And she didn't say a word about it to any cat the entire time. And...well, she kept Crowfeather a secret too. Leafpool is very good at keeping secrets," she meowed again. She looked Hollypaw in the eye. "And so am I."

Before Hollypaw could think of what to answer, the bushes rustled and two ginger cats walked out of them. One tom, and one she-cat. The she-cat had ginger fur, paler than Squirrelflight's and her companion's, and eyes the same shade of green as Hollypaw's. The tom had blazing ginger fur and bright green eyes. He was the spitting image of Squirrelflight.

Actually, Hollypaw realized, Squirrelflight was the spitting image of _him_.

Because she had realized who these cats were. They matched Leafpool's descriptions exactly.

"Hollypaw," Squirrelflight started,"this is my father, Firestar, ThunderClan's leader, and my mother, Sandstorm. Sandstorm, Firestar, this is Hollypaw, Leafpool's kit."


End file.
